Saturday, February 27, 2010

Miss Marmee and Grandpa

Yesterday evening we had a nice visit via Skype with these two lovely ladies. They were fresh from a nap, enjoying cuddles and snuggles with their Mama on the big bed. We enjoyed playing a little "I spy", and once "caught" the Nannie blanket as it was thrown at the camera for a short game of "toss and catch". Sometimes I call them "Miss Emme" and "Miss Ruby". Yesterday Emme called me "Miss Marmee" for almost the entire conversation. Ruby always says "Grandpa", but yesterday to Emme we were "Miss Marmee and PPa". We heard about playing in the snow, caught a few lines from some recent songs they have learned, and viewed "The Mouth"--a paper plate folded in half with marshmallow teeth and a red tongue. It talks with Emme.
This is how Ruby enjoys her marshmallows.

Emme likes hers in hot chocolate or even with glue on them, dried for several days on a paper plate "mouth". I am a witness to her enjoying them that way.
She told us about kissing a boy at school. When we asked Ruby if she kissed boys at school she replied, "NO. At home."

Miss Marmee and PPa love you, girls!

Thursday, February 25, 2010

What I love about Thursday, and confess about Monday



MUFFIN COMES HOME FROM WORKING IN THE BIG CITY!


More time to do needlework than when I'm teaching all afternoon.

More time for the second cup of coffee, perhaps with a homemade biscotti too.

More time to watch Scooter take a nap. Perhaps I will indulge myself in a nap too. Although, I will not, ever again, as long as I live, mistakenly swallow his liver medicine again, as I did on Monday. Yes, I confess that I laid all my vitamins and allergy meds out on the cabinet, along with Scooter's pain and liver meds. I gave him the pain med, reached back to take my pills and immediately realized that I just swallowed something too big. It was his Denosyl! I immediately felt like I wanted to scratch behind my ears and roll over, then run through the doggy door. Wait, I already tried that! That's how I bruised my arm when locked myself out of the house and tried to reach through the doggy door to unlock the door knob. No, I read the web site and found no warnings at all for Denosyl, but Muffin, who was home with upper respiratory infection, called poison control and learned that not only was I in no danger at all, but that some humans actually take Denosyl. Go figure. Scooter just seemed upset that he didn't get his second "treat" for the day. I fed him some itty bitty dog biscuits, and NO, I did not feel the urge to taste them. Nor did I chase the mail carrier or wear a flea collar as some of my Facebook "friends" suggested I might. And that's all I have to say about that. Woof!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Sneusday ( Snowy Tuesday)

Outside my house today.....

four inches of snow fell during the night, morning, and early afternoon.

In my neighborhood....

all was quiet, except for the birds on the lake and the squirrels running over the rooftops and yards, leaving tracks in otherwise pristine fluffy snow.

School was cancelled today. Can you tell?

This is my Father's world and to my listening ears

all nature sings and 'round me rings the music of the spheres.



Monday, February 22, 2010

What have I been doing?

February has been lots busier that I expected. Muffin and I have been on the road and busier than birds getting ready for winter. In addition to teaching my students I have had several programs, meetings, and performances, events, ministry opportunities, and our regular work schedules.

Here is Muffin on a trolley in San Antonio.

Early this month we enjoyed shopping online for Joy's birthday--her 30th! Seriously? It was 30 years ago when we drove to the hospital on a snowy day for her birth? Not possible!

On her birthday for 2010 Muffin and I were in San Antonio at the Texas Music Educators Association Convention. It's BIG! More vendors, exhibitors, presenters, concerts, showcases, meetings, and buildings than one can imagine. These violins are very nice ones offered by just one of many high end shops represented at the convention.

I bought these Bow Buddies for my studio. The little frog and fish help students form a flawless bow hold. I think it will assist in revolutionizing string instrument education!

Eye glasses for sale!

Look closely. These are all lamps!

Color coded handbells, anyone?

Leaving San Antonio we visited the Rowdy Girls. Grandpa and Daddy JB are wearing funny hats at this restaurant.
McSisters cheesing in the sunlight at Saturday morning brunch.

The following week was a huge rush to get my students ready for a judging event. Here is one of them with "da judge", who is really our symphony's concertmaster, and gives mini lessons to each student after their performances. It is so very helpful to me as a teacher for them to get this kind of feedback. Eighteen of them played last Friday. One more will play at an alternate time this week. After that event was completed I went to a funeral visitation and a three hour rehearsal while a very sick Muffin drove home from a visit with Nana. He got a shot and a prescription and after lots of rest on Saturday, Sunday and today, he was feeling better before returning to work in the Big City.

Muffin took me to the Sweetheart Banquet at our church on Valentine's Day. It was lovely!

Before going into a series of rehearsals for another concert last weekend, my feet went to Ms. D for a soak, a massage and a lovely pedicure. Heavenly!

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

What I love about Wednesday

Wednesday is my Bible study day. Last semester Miz A led us in a sozo study. This semester we have a book, Restoring the Foundations, by Chester and Betsy Kylstra.
RTF frntCover-sm.jpg
As much as I love this study and this group, I needed to miss this morning to spend some time alone with the Lord. Scooter didn't mind having me home either. I love his doggie devotion!
After lunch my students begin arriving in ones, twos and threes. This cutie is five years old now and has learned two new songs since Christmas and is playing three short pieces for an adjudicated event in two weeks. I love her posture and bow hold!

After the last students leave my house near six thirty I quickly change clothes, grab a bottle of water and go to Body Flow. I love breathing deeply and working all the muscle kinks out from sitting, standing and playing violin with my students all afternoon. While I'm relaxing at the end of class, I love listening to what the Holy Spirit is saying.
This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it!

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Wrong Spritzer

Last week I was about two quarts overloaded on adrenaline because I was so pumped about our symphony concert on Saturday night. I would rank this in the top five most difficult concerts in my forty something years of playing in orchestras. Remember that my "word for the year" is skill? I practiced for hours with the metronome. I listened for hours to the recording of the Bartok Concerto for Orchestra. I studied the music and listened for more hours. I practiced one measure, then added another, then another, etc. until I could play whole passages at the tempo markings without a breakdown. I watched youtube videos of performances of the concerto. By the first orchestra rehearsal I was really tense. The following day I did two hours of workout at the gym (an hour of Body Flow and an hour of Pilates training shared with a friend), exhausted myself, recovered with a nap, and practiced another hour before the second rehearsal. At the end of the second rehearsal I was more confident, and also even more anxious about either becoming lost in the compressed rests or just playing in a rest or getting lost in the complex bowing. I didn't sleep too well that night, woke up edgy and was really wiped out at the end of four hours of rehearsal. After a nap I warmed up for about 30-45 minutes and was ready to kill it. And we did! It was a very decent performance of the Bartok, followed by the orchestra accompanying Giora Schmidt's solo of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. Which is also on youtube illegally.

I was so distracted with my learning process last week that I did a really crazy thing one morning. I shampooed my hair and toweled it almost dry. Reached into the cabinet for my yellow can of mousse for curly hair, shook it up and spritzed it on the back. Only it didn't sound right. I looked in my hand and I was holding a can of spray on sun screen! Also yellow. And although I appreciate that the back of my head was protected from sun, it was pouring rain outside. Hair do- over!

Sunday after church I was so drained of intelligent thought that I skipped lunch and went to sleep and didn't wake up for about four and a half hours. I moved that second yellow can far, far away from the hair products.